Air-compressor.



C. NEMANN'. AIR COMPRESSOR. Aranguren Hum oor. 11,1906. 907,859.Patented Dec. 29, 1908.

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c. NEUMANN. A13-COMPRESSOR. APAP'LIOATIJON FILED OO-T. 1.1,1906,907,859'. Patented Dec.' 29, 190s.

G. NIEUIMIAIIII.` AIR coMPBEss'on. APPLICATION FILED 00T. 11, 1906.

Patented 1m29, 190s.

C.' N EUMANN. AIR GOMPBJSSOB..` APPLmATroN FILED 00T. 11,1906r PatentedDec.29, 1908.

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UNITED STATES `I )ATENT OEEIOE.

CHRISTIAN NEUMANN, oF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNEvASSIGNMENTS, To NEUMANN AIR POWER COMPANY, A CORPORATION or MISSOURI.

j AIR-COMPRESSOR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 29, 1908.

To all whom 'it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHRISTIAN NEUMANN, a citizen of the United States,and resident of St. Louis, Missouri, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Air-Compressors, of which the following is aspecification.

My invention relates to improvements in air compressors, and consists inthe novel a1- rangement, construction and combination of parts as willbe fully hereinafter described and claimed.

The object of my invention is to construct a device whereby air iscompressed and delivered at a continuous pressure by a plurality ofpistons operating alternately by the movement of a revolving cam.

A further object of my invention is to construct a device having aplurality of pistons arranged to be operated by a revolving cam, eachbeing continuously operated to produce a steady flow of compressed air.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a vertical, central, sectional view of mycompleteinvention. Fig. 2 is a horizontal, sectional view taken on theline 2-2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a vertical, central 'cross-sectional view.Fig. 4 is an enlarged detail sectional view of a portion of the casingand cam mechanism and the arrangement of one of the pistons. Fig. 5 is adetail side elevation of the cam made use of in carrying out myinvention. Fig. 6 is an enlarged detail sectional perspective view ofone of the pistons and piston chamber showing their position andconstruction. Fig. 7 is a detail sectional view of a portion of thepiston and retarder head showing the air tight knuckle joint. Fig. 8 isa detail view of the flap valve used on the piston. Fig. 9 is adiagrammatic view showing the cam and pistons in their various positionsduring the revolution of the cam. Fig. 1() is a detail, perspective viewof a portion of the istonand side wall of the casing with parts brokenaway and in section.

In the construction of my invention I provide a casing composed of twoside walls 11,

each provided with a support 12 which are mounted upon a base frame 13.The outer eripheries of the side walls 11 are suitably anged to supporta sheet covering 15 which is held thereon by bolts or the like; Thesheet covering 15 is cut awayfat the top to provide an air inlet 16 and'over this inlet and upon lthe casing is mounted a hood l'f?, its endsbeing open topermit the influx o air. I

The center of the side walls 11 are provided with hubs 18 which act as abearing for a center shaft 19 upon which are mounted a combination camand drive wheel 20, one located on each side of the casing. Upon saidshaft are also provided fly wheels 21, and the ends of said shaft areadditionally supported in bearings 22.

The drive wheel 20 is provided with a cam slot 23 in which extend pistonoperating pins 24 provided with rollers 25.

In the casing I provide a plurality of compression chambers each ofwhich is formed y a stationary wall 26 and a stationary curvilinear wall27. The said walls are held in position against the side walls of thecasing by being embedded in grooves and tightly clamped to provideair-tight joints. In the inner surface of the wall 26 I rovide a socket28 in which .operates the uckle joint 29 of the piston 30, and in orderto provide a perfect air-tight joint between the knuckle and the socketI provide a suitable packing 31 such as Babbitt metal or the like, andthe said knuckle is held in hinged position by the bolts or screws 32.In both sides and vlower edge of the piston 30 I provide elongated slots33 in which are inserted strips of packing material 34, the ends soarranged as to overlap each other as indicated by the numeral 35, and inthe slots are placed springs 36, the tendency of which is to keep thepacking in contact with the inner surface of the compression chamber soas to prevent the escape of air.

Near the free end of the piston and to each side I secure in anydesirable manner piston pins 24 which project through slots 37 formed'inthe side walls 11. The said slots 37 are curvilinear in form and extendfrom the stationary wall 26 to the flange formed on the outer peripheryof said side walls permitting the piston 30 to have full swing, and inorder to prevent leakage through the said slots 37 I provide adove-tailed follower 38 operating in a dove-tailed groove 39 formed inthe inner surface of each wall, and attached to the piston so thatduring the operation of the piston the followers 38 will keep the slots37closed.V

' Each stationary wall 26 is provided witha when the piston 30 operatesinwardly, compressing the Aair within the compression chamber anddischarging it through the valves and into the hood 42 and out throughthe pipe 43 in tov a delivery pipe 44 which may be connected to asuitable reservoir for retaining the compressed air.

In each piston 30 I also provide a plurality of openings 45 in which arelocated valves 46 which operate during the outward movement of thepiston so as to permit air to pass within the compression chamber.

In Figs. 1 and 9 I show the cams in their lowest position and when inthis position the piston in the compression chamber A has finished itscompression, the piston in the compression chamber B is in the act ofcompressing and the piston in the compression chamber C is in itsoutward movement to allow a fresh supply of air to enter into thecompression chamber through the valve openings 45. By referring to Fig.9 the various positions of the pistons in relation with the severalpositions of the cam are indicated by solid and dotted lines Theprinciple involved in my foregoing invention is the same as thatinvolved in my eontemporaneously pending application for Letters Patentfor improvements in pumps, Serial No. 340,221, filed October 23, 1906;and the mechanism here involved' differs from the mechanism in my saidother invention to the extent of the arrangement and location of thevalves to which such diiference is made necessary by the differencesbetween the functions of an air compressor and a ump.

t will be observed from the drawings and the Aforegoing description thatthe series of compression chambers is arranged about a common center andthat the piston in each chamber is hinged at such a point within thechamber that the movement of the pistons for the purpose of compressingair is toward that common center. This grouping of the compressionchambers and arrangement of the pistons is such as to utilize the powerexerted by the cam with the greatest possible efliciency; the forceexerted by the cam upon the piston increasing as the piston is forcednearest to the highest point of compression within the compressionchamber.

rIhe cam mechanism shown and described is substantially a singlemechanism, and the same result can be attained by the use of a singlecam as is attained by the simultaneous employment of corresponding camslocated upon opposite sides of the machine; but in practice, the doubleform shown and described is preferable as affording a safeguard againstbreakage.

It is obvious that other mechanism might be employed to accomplish ltheresult of driving the pistons successively toward the common centerabout which the compression chambers are grouped for the purpose ofcompressing alr.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim is: i 1. An aircompressor comprising a casing, a plurality of compression chamberslocated in said casing, pistons hingedly mounted in said compressionchambers, pins carried by said pistons and projecting through the wallsof the easing, cams communicating with said pins and operating saidpistons alternately during the revolution of said cams, substantially asspecified.

2. An air compressor comprising a casing mounted on a base, a pluralityof compression chambers located in said casing, pistons hingedly locatedin said compression chambers, pins located on said pistons andprojecting through slots formed in the walls of said casing, rollersmounted upon said pins, cams communicating with the rollers on said pinsand operating the pistons during their revolution, substantially asspecified.

3. An air compressor comprising a easing, a shaft extending through saideasing, drive wheels and fly wheels mounted upon said shaft, compressionchambers located in said casing, a piston located in each of saidcompression chambers, roller pins carried by said pistons and projectingthrough slots formed in the walls of the casing, followers attached tosaid pistons and operating in the slots formed in said walls, saidroller pins operating in cam grooves formed in the drive wheels foroperating said pistons alternately compressing air in the compressionchambers during the revolution of the drive wheels, and expelling theair through valves, substantially as specified.

4. An air compressor comprising a casing, a series of compressionchambers located within the casing, and equidistant from the center ofthe casing, pistons hingedly mounted in said. compression chambers, pinscarried by said pistons and projecting through the walls of the casing,and a cam mechanism controlling the operations of said pins, whereby thefree end of the piston is driven toward the center of the casing toeilect a compression of the air within the compression chamber,substantially as described.v

5. An air compressor comprising a plurality of compression chambersradially mounted about a common center, pistons hingedly mounted ineachv of the said chambers and operating toward a common center, inletvalves located on said pistons and discharge valves located in the wallsof the chambers, and a cam mechanism whereby said pistons aresuccessively actuated, substantially as described.

6. In an air compressor, the combination of a plurality of compressionchambers radially disposed about a common center, a piston hingedlymounted in each of said comsaid common pression chambers so that itscompressive movement shall be toward the common center of saidcompression chambers, a single cam mounted eccentrically with referenceto center, and means whereby each of said pistons is slidably engagedwith said cam, whereby said pistons are successively actuated,substantially as described.

7. In an air compressor, the combination of a plurality of compressionchambers radially disposed about a common center, a piston hingedlymounted in each of said compression chambers so that its compressivemovement shall be toward said common center, a single cam mountedeccentrically with reference to said center, and slidable engaging meansbetween said cam and each of said pistons, whereby said pistons aresuccessively and continuously actuated to produce a continuous flow ofcompressed a1r of substantially uniform pressure, substantially asdescribed.

8. An air compressor comprising a casing, a plurality of compressionchambers located in said casing, pistons hingedly mounted in saidcompression chambers, pins carried by said istons and projecting throughthe walls of tlib casing, and a single cam mounted without the wall ofthe casing and engaging with said ins to operate the said plstons,substantialIy as described.

9; An air compressor com rising a casing mounted on-a base, a plura ityof compression chambers located in said casing, pistons hingedly locatedin saidcompression chambers, pins located on said pistons and rojectingthrough slots formed in the wal s of said casing, rollers mounted uponsaid pins, and a single cam engaging with the rollers on said pins tooperatethe pistons, substantially as described.

10. An air compressor comprising a plurality of compression chambersdiverging from a common center, a piston hingedly mounted in each ofsaid chambers and at the outward end thereof, inlet valves located onsaid pistons and discharge valves located in the wall of the chamber,cams operating said pistons compressing air and expelling it in a How bythe alternate operation of the pistons, substantially as specied.

11. An air compressor, comprising a casing, a plurality of compressionchambers located in the casing and diverging from a common center,pistons hingedly mounted at the outermost end of each of the compressionchambers, a center shaft, a cam operating on the center shaft to operatethepistons toward a common center for compressing air within thechambers, substantially as specified.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification, inpresence of two subscribing witnesses.

CHRISTIAN NEUMANN.

Witnesses:

ALFRED A. EIoKs, WALTER C. STEIN.

